Kenyan regulations demand pre-export quality compliance

With a constantly developing market for imported goods, Kenya offers a strong and varied opportunity for those involved in international trade. So said Intertek’s Douglas Nyamori, Government services manager for product conformity programmes. He was speaking at an exporter business breakfast hosted by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry – Johannesburg recently. Intertek assists local and global businesses to ensure that their products and processes meet industry standards. Kenya imported US$8.2 billion worth of goods in 2006. “In order to assure Kenyan consumers of the quality and safety of the imported goods, the Kenya Bureau of Standards implemented a very clear set of guidelines in 2005 called the Pre- Export Verification of Conformity to Standards Programme,” he said. This verifies that all regulated products in the respective exporting countries comply with the Kenyan technical regulations and mandatory standards, as well as approved international and national standards. Similarly exporters and importers trading with Nigeria have to comply with the requirements of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programme (SONCAP) for their goods to be cleared through customs. Failure to do so, said Nyamori, could lead to severe delays in goods clearances, penalties or even shipments being returned. SONCAP was implemented in 2005 to ensure Nigerian consumers of the quality and safety of imported goods and to facilitate trade. There is a growing demand for trade with both Nigeria and Kenya, he said. Nyamori said many countries around the world were enforcing mandatory legislation for goods being imported into their countries to ensure the safety of imports, increase the quality of imported products and prevent the dumping of sub-standard products, so protecting their citizens and preventing unfair competition.